According to Cofeed, on the week as of September 20th, details of soybean oil inventories and outstanding contracts are as follows:

　

This week (Sept. 14th-20th), the operation rate has gone up for slightly smaller soybean meal inventory, fair crush margins and higher demand as some downstream buyers are replenishing in advance for National Day holidays. Soybean crush at domestic mills totals 1,829,000 tonnes (meal 1,444,910 tonnes and oil 347,510 tonnes), an increase of 29,300 tonnes by 1.62% from 1,799,700 tonnes last week. Meanwhile, the operation rate (capacity utilization) is 50.55%, up 0.81 percentage points from 49.74% last week. Soybean crush is expected to be little changed next week and to sharply fall that following week due to the National Day holiday, of which it will be at around 1.83 mln tonnes and 1.36 mln tonnes, respectively.

 

In addition to the pickup in operation rate, the market is in gloomy demand with the end of the restocking for packing oils. Soybean oil inventory thus increases this week with a moderate delivery pace. On the week as of September 20th, the commercial inventory has totaled 1,348,050 tonnes, up 17,390 tonnes by 1.31% from 1,330,660 tonnes last week, up 22,750 tonnes by 1.72% from 1,325,300 tonnes last month, yet down 271,950 tonnes by 16.79% from 1,620,000 tonnes of the corresponding period last year. And the five-year average at the same period is 1,298,900 tonnes.

 

Fig.: China’s Soybean Oil Stocks in Recent Years